"Oh my God," Gayle cried in a voice filled with misery. She looked so pale that Will could see the veins standing out clearly under her skin. Her hands shook as she held her daughter's and Will realized that the contact must have been draining everything she had left. He hurried to her side and gently pried her hands away from Talitha's cold ones. "Oh my God," she repeated, as he lowered her into the wheel chair. "He's not like her? Are you sure?"
"No, no he isn't. He had a heart attack I think, but he's alive and he told me to save Talitha. He saw something, Mommy, something about Talitha."
"Why did I do it? Oh, why did I make him go back into that awful place?"
"It's not your fault. He wanted to go."
"No, I made him go." she said bitterly. Her face was pinched, and Will thought she had aged a great deal in the last day.
Will saw there was going to be no talking her out of the self-flagellation so he tried a different tact. "You should've seen him, he was like a hero out of a book. He fought the demon. He attacked it with his sword, and he stabbed it, right in the...where the face should be and he saved me. Mom don't be sad, be proud of him."
"I am proud of him. I've always been proud of him. But if it weren't for me..." she looked down at her hands and her tears fell into them. "Did he kill it? When he stabbed it, did it die, or go away?"
The siren was now practically on top of them— it seemed to be just outside their window. Will looked out, but the ambulance was hidden from view by the canopy above the emergency room entrance. "No, I don't think so, but Mom we should go to him."
"No, not yet. They won't let us anywhere near him, at least for a while." She seemed to be recovering from the touch of her daughter and the shock of Will's news. "Please sit down, Willy J. You look like you're going to shake to pieces."
"What?" Looking down at himself, he saw that he was holding his arms bent, so that his hands were close to his chest—they were shaking badly. His whole body seemed to be shaking and a great hollow weakness filled him. The notion that he just might faint came to him and he lurched to one of the uncomfortable orange plastic chairs, collapsing into it.
"Lisa, can you please come hold Talitha's hand for me, thanks." Gayle's voice was weary, yet still commanding. "And Katie can you go warm up your brother, he looks to be freezing."
He looked up to see Lisa and Katie in the doorway. Each wore an identical worried frown. "What happened? Is everyone ok?" Lisa asked cautiously as Katie came and clambered up into Will's lap, giving him a kiss on the cheek once she had settled in.
Will told them an abridged version of what had happened so as not to scare Katie too much.
"Wow," Lisa said, quietly and the room was silent for a few minutes as each of them took in the story.
After quite a while, Gayle took a deep, steadying breath. "Willy J, are you feeling better?" she asked. "Do you think you can push Katie and me down to the E.R. to see dad?" Nodding, he picked up his feather light sister and gently put her in her mother's lap.
3
Gayle had been correct; the three of them were denied admittance to see William. They were left to cool their heels in the waiting room for a good long time.
They were told that he was in 'serious but stable condition', nothing more. At first, they thumbed through old Time magazines and copies of Highlights, searching for Waldo, but then, despite the uncomfortable chairs each fell into a deep sleep. It was over an hour later before a nurse came and woke them up, allowing them to come back.
Will was shocked at the ashen, grey appearance of his father's normally healthy-looking face. His eyes were red-rimmed with great dark circles under them.
"How is Talitha?" William asked, in a voice as rough as sandpaper.
"She's the same. What's wrong? Was it your heart or..." Gayle asked and she trembled with fear at what he might say.
"They think it was a minor heart attack, but it feels like it was something different...worse maybe. I could be wrong of course. I've never had a heart attack before, but I don't have any of the symptoms they describe." His weak voice ranged barely above a whisper and they all leaned in to him to hear him speak. "I just...it doesn't matter. What does matter is Talitha. We were wrong about It. It's not in her. Her soul is in IT. And the dem...the thing I should say, is not even here—at the house I mean, it's somewhere else. I don't know how it works but I think it's a part of a portal or gateway."
"Where does this gateway lead to?" Will was afraid he already knew the answer, but it was a question that burned in him.
"I don't know, but somewhere unpleasant I'm sure," William responded, his voice quieter still. "But I know this: if let Talitha die, she'll be trapped there forever. We can't do that to her." Here the Commander paused to take a deep breath before going on. "Will, do you know when Father Alba might arrive?"
"He said late this afternoon, he wasn't very specific."
"Do you think he can do something?" Gayle asked hopefully, looking from father to son.
"I don't know, but if anyone can I think it'll have to be a priest," William answered. He rested his head back on the pillow and looked up at the ceiling. There was a long silence and Will stared down at his shoes and thought of nothing. A few minutes later, he saw that his father was asleep again and that his mother was drowsing in her chair. Only Katie seemed awake, she smiled at him and put one of her tiny fingers to her mouth, suggesting they should be quiet.
The nurse who had brought them in, walked by and Katie eyed her with surprising suspicion. Will watched as her blue eyes roved over the lady and the similarity between Katie and her sister was never more apparent. They were normally as different as night and day and not just their features. It was their personalities. Katie seemed to have too much life and energy to be contained in one small person. It flowed from her unchecked, a wild untamed river without beginning or end. Talitha, on the other hand was reserved, holding everything in, and though not miserly with her life, she was careful with the precious gift.
Now Will noticed how Katie eyed the hospital staff with that same keen perception that he envied in Talitha and his father. She scrutinized each person from head to toe with those big blue eyes. At one time he would've described those eyes as being innocent. Now they were icy.
It was not long before Doctor Thielsen came in accompanied by another doctor. There seemed to be some dispute between the two concerning the cause of William's heart attack. Will didn't trouble himself with the details since they were both wrong. He sat staring at his shoes some more, as each made suggestions concerning exercise and proper nutrition.
Finally, a very tired Doctor Thielsen asked Gayle, "Do you wish to rescind the order to withdraw life support from Talitha?"
"Yes...for the time being."
"Good, that's what I was hoping for. I'm going off-shift. Doctor McKew in the ICU will be checking in on you, Commander. We're transferring you up there in a few minutes." He looked gravely at Gayle. "Your husband needs lots of rest, and he doesn't seem to be an ideal patient in that arena. Can you make sure he stays put for while?"
She nodded, but the Commander's eyes narrowed in his weary and sick face. If he was going to say anything, he wasn't given the chance; there was a sudden flurry of activity about him as he was prepped for the move upstairs. Minutes later he transitioned to a room just across the hall from Talitha, and as soon as he was settled in, Will left to check on her.
Brian Galt stood beside her bed, holding her hand, his face fairly glistened with tears. Will stepped back so as not to embarrass him in his grief and spied Lisa sitting on the floor wrapped in a blanket. Sitting next to her, he whispered his love for her.
She asked and he told her about his father's condition. With confidence she responded, "He's going to be fine. You know he will. Who's tougher than your dad, right?" When he only nodded glumly she snuggled closer. "Come here. Get under the blanket." He did and even as she kissed him on the forehead, he was falling asleep.
****
"Willy J? Hey, Willy
J! Are you in a coma too?" Small hands attempted to shake him awake. He tried hard to open his eyes and finally one cracked enough to see Katie, who smiled with genuine relief that he wasn't in a coma. "Hi Willy J sleepy-head. Father Alba is here and daddy wants you to go to his room." He blinked at her, trying to figure out what she was talking about.
"What? Father Al...what?" Will asked, groggily.
"Father Alba...Al-Bah. You know, the guy who came to dinner with that stinky smoking thing." Katie replied to his incoherent question as she made to lift him up from the floor.
It was all coming back to him and the memory brought along a great deal of anxiety with it. "Right, the priest," he said. A low sniffle made him look to see that Brian was still next to the bed. His face no longer shone with tears but was now set in an angry look of hard determination. He still held Talitha's hand, but even as Will watched, Brian switched hands rubbing the cold one on the leg of his jeans.
"UMPH! Come on Willy J," Katie groused, struggling mightily, "Daddy's gonna be mad at you on-a-cuz you're so slow." He worked his body up, allowing her to think she was doing the lion's share of the work. "Are you hungry?" she asked him. "It's kinda funny but the doctor people brought Talitha dinner, even though she's asleep in her coma and all. I ate the Jell-O. It was red."
"No, thank you, we'll save it for Talitha when she wakes up." He wasn't hungry despite the clock telling him he had missed three meals and numerous snacks already. "Wow after six?"
"Yeah it's been really, really boring watching everyone nap. Even daddy napped and he never naps." Katie shook her head at the waste of a pretty day. "Hey, Willy J, nobody tells me nothing. What does it mean... heart attack? Can your heart really attack you from inside? Does it have teeth or something?"
"No, I think it means that your heart stops beating and it needs help to get going again." Katie opened her mouth to ask one of an infinite number of follow-up questions but Will forestalled her: "I have to go see dad, remember. Can you wait here with Brian? I think this will be a Grown up and Big Kid talk and I need someone who really knows how, to stand guard over Talitha." He picked her up and placed her on the bed with her sister. Katie nodded glumly, but was already helping herself to Talitha's dinner when he left.
His father's room was quiet and the atmosphere exceedingly tense. Even the normally loquacious Father Alba simply stood quietly, fidgeting with the buckle of a satchel he had over his shoulder. William appeared only slightly better from his long nap, and when he finally did speak it was with a gravely but clearly audible voice. "Brian, can you please wait in the other room with Talitha?" Will glanced behind him, and was a little surprised to see Talitha's boyfriend standing there.
"Excuse me, Mr. Jern," Lisa said cautiously. "I've already told him the whole story. I hope that was ok. He loves your daughter and I felt he should hear the truth." Brian looked at the Commander in that confident manner of his, and William stared back appraisingly.
He must have been ok with what he saw. "Brian and Lisa, this goes no further. You don't tell your parents, friends, not even your diary." When they nodded in agreement, he began his story, starting with the Greek painter and ending when Will pulled him from the house. His voice, not strong to begin with, grew weaker and more hoarse, and when he finally finished he took a long deep pull at a glass of water that sat next to his bed.
Everyone stared at the priest waiting for answers, but he just looked at the floor, still fiddling with the buckle. When nearly a minute passed Will became a little angry. "You do believe him, don't you? My mom and I are eyewitnesses, and so is Katie."
"I don't know really. If what you're saying is true...I don't know. I think this is out of my league really. I thought..." The buckle made a click-tick noise and the man's face was uneasy.
"You thought what?" Commander Jern demanded in his rasping voice. "You must have suspected something. Why else did you point out the placards to me at the church? Why did you insist on the house-blessing?"
"I thought it could be a ghost, or a lost spirit, something interesting like that." Click-tick, click-tick. "But a demon? A real demon, that's too much."
William leaned back in his bed looking exhausted and Gayle spoke up with irritation in her voice, "Too much for what exactly? You're a priest, isn't this what you do? Fight evil?"
"Yes of course, but... not really. It's just some priests; not all of us." Click-tick.
Gayle looked doubtfully at the man. "So you aren't going to help us?"
Click-tick, click-tick. "I didn't say that. I just don't know exactly what we're dealing with here. First Commander Jern says it's a demon, and then he says it's a portal. And then there is..." his hand subconsciously patted the satchel.
"There's what?" came the raspy voice of the Commander. "Please tell us what you know or why you suspected our house was haunted."
4
Click-tick, click-tick, click-tick.
The priest's fidgeting increased in tempo. "It was Judith Nelson. The Nelsons lived in the house just prior to you. Out of the blue, she started attending Mass two-to-three times a week and then she started coming to confession...a lot. She was always very chatty after Mass and I began to wonder if she was lonely or bored." He looked around nodding, and Will could see the sweat in his thin hair. "Then after about three weeks she was clearly starting to make things up at confession in order to come and see me. So I confronted her about it." Father Alba chuckled, ruefully, and shook his head in embarrassment. "I was actually worried that she...you know liked me. Stupid, I know, but it has happened before, just never to me." Click-tick, click-tick, click-tick. "Either way, either way, she took a long time to spit out that she felt her house was haunted. She told me about how it was cold in certain areas and that sometimes she had seen odd things, pretty much the same things you're experiencing."
He paused and looked down to the floor, and the buckle became a constant click-tick, click-tick, click-tick. "I didn't believe her, and I uh, suggested that she see a psychiatrist."
"Don't beat yourself up over it, Father," Commander Jern said. "You would've been correct doing just that almost a hundred percent of the time."
"That's what I tell myself," Father Alba said. A moment later he finally stopped jiggling the buckle and put his hands in his pockets. "Either way, she stopped coming to church or to confession and a few weeks later I ran into her while at the commissary. She was a wreck. She didn't look like she had slept in days; it was the saddest thing. So I told her that if she wanted me to, I would be happy to come over and bless the house. Right on the spot she broke down in tears. So I went with her to the church to collect my things and she clung to me weeping in the worst way, and I felt horrible for abandoning her the way I did."
He started again with the buckle, click-tick, click-tick, click-tick, and then began to pace in the small room, his sweat standing out in beads. "I did the blessing and she insisted I do every room including the staircases and then she had me do the basement. She wouldn't go down there for anything. I went alone, going from room-to-room speaking loudly so that she could hear me and I finished with the boiler room."
He paused dramatically, looking around, click-tick, click-tick, click-tick. "The boiler room was cold, really cold and I started to get a creepy feeling in there. So I hurried and did my prayers and as I was finishing, I started to sprinkle the Holy Water, but I raised my arm to high, and some of the water hit the light bulb hanging from the ceiling." He stopped, obviously remembering the scene, and the buckle clicking slowed in tempo. "The light bulb was right over head and it must have been hot and POP! It actually exploded. And just as it went out I saw...something. Just as you did, Commander, it was there but not there. I almost screamed. I'm embarrassed to say it, but it gave me such a fright that I nearly screamed. I would've run upstairs, only I was frozen in place with fear. I stood there, really unable to move, but after a few minutes when nothing further happened I left as fast as I could. On the way up the stairs, I felt...better, lighter. It was as if a weight
had been lifted from me and the wonderful part was that Mrs. Nelson felt it too. She was smiling and laughing, it was a great moment."
A smile at the memory lit up his face briefly, but it didn't last. "For the next few weeks everything seemed great. She started coming to church again and she looked good but then she got sick, physically sick. No one knew it at the time, but she wrote to me a couple of weeks ago and it turns out she had heavy metal poisoning...Mercury poisoning I think she said. She blamed it on the house and it got me thinking about the place. I checked around the library for more information but there was nothing. I'd almost lost interest in it when I ran into Skipper outside your place, just a few days before you moved in. He was standing there looking at the house and when I walked up he began talking like we were the best of friends hanging out at a bar." Without asking, the priest took a long drink from William's water glass. "Thanks."
"What did Skipper say?" Gayle demanded, with exasperation shaking her voice.
"Well, he told me how three people were murdered in that very house."
"You only showed me the names of two people," William said.
"The third was a sixteen-year-old girl, Emily Fortini. She was the daughter of one of the murdered men. Anyway, Skipper laughs and told me the Army had covered it up. He said he was the only one left on the Island who knew anything about it."
"Why would the Army bother covering up a murder on a Coast Guard base?" Will asked, perplexed. "It doesn't make any sense."
"The murders were twenty-one years ago. Back then this island was an Army base," Father Alba explained. "So Skipper told me what he knew. A fire broke out one night and when the firemen responded, they all started to choke on a foul stench. He said that a body, the girl's, was burning in the basement and that the smell was horrible and caused some of the men to throw up. When they finally got the fire contained they searched the place and found two more bodies in an attic bedroom."
The Trilogy of the Void: The Complete Boxed Set Page 26
